How To Get Rid Of Your Talking About This Number on Facebook

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How To Get Rid Of Your Talking About This Number on Facebook

If the “talking about this” number on your Facebook business page, bothers you, as it does us, learn how to hide it now.

When Facebook forced all business pages to the Timeline layout at the end of March 2012, some loved it, many hated it, and others were indifferent. While there are certain pros for companies, there are also many cons.

One huge frustration is the visibility of the “talking about this” number.

It shows on business pages directly below the Timeline cover photo. The concept is similar to Google Analytics – a way to track success with specific posts on Facebook. Having access to your stats can help you decide what works best for your page. But, you may not want your customers or competitors seeing any of your private data. As of now, Facebook has not given you a choice. Everyone sees how many are “talking about you.” I still do not completely understand the math behind the number, Facebook says the number comes from “sharing, liking, or commenting on your post, answering a question, or responding to an event.”

Since its inception, the calculation has remained unclear. Regardless, seeing the MCP “Talking About This” number bounce from 2,500 to 4,000 to 6,000 and back to 2,500 in a matter of days, stresses me out. I am keenly aware that, even with high numbers, competitors and customers may analyze or draw conclusions from a number that, in my opinion, they should not have access to. My solution is easy – Facebook should allow each business page to decide if that number is visible. Instead, with no privacy controls, many are looking for another way to hide it.

I searched the Internet and found no “how-to.” Then I played around this past week until I figured it out. The answer is simple, though I would still prefer control over this without needing to alter the type of page I own. Community pages do not show this number on the Timeline. So rather than “claiming” to be an official page, you can classify your page as a “community” page of something else. There are problems with this too, and I am not sure which route we will go – hide as a community page or keep the number showing as an official business page (since that is truly what we are). I wish we could hide it and stay a regular business page – anyone at Facebook reading this?

Here’s how you can hide your number on the front of your Timeline (or until Facebook makes more changes):

Two notes:

* This system is not perfect. The number still shows in the search bar, but not directly on your page.

** Disclaimer – Facebook may change this at any time. MCP Actions is not responsible for changes you make to your page or you changing your desigation to a community page. It appears to work the same, but we make no guarantees. We have sent numerous emails to Facebook to ask about getting rid of this number and about the current status of pages and insights. We received no reply.

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MCP Actions

Write for MCP! This post was written by a MCP™ Guest Blogger. If you would like to write a photo editing tutorial, blueprint using MCP Products, or photography tips on the MCP Actions Blog, check out our Guest Writers Wanted page for details.

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